AMES – No. 3 Iowa State takes on No. 15 South Dakota State (SDSU) Sunday in Humboldt, Iowa. The Cyclones are 7-1 in duals this season and 3-0 in conference. The Jackrabbits sit at 10-2 on the year, and a record of 3-1 in the Big 12.
This is the fifth consecutive season that the Cyclones have wrestled in Humboldt. It started as a way to give back to some of the earliest donors when Iowa State head coach Kevin Dresser took the position nine years ago.
“I thought, ‘How can we reward these people?’” Dresser said. “Having a dual meet in Humboldt just really kind of taken off … I know our guys really like it.”
Humboldt also happens to be the home of Dresser. Which allows the unique opportunity of coming back to the old gym not just as an alum, but as a coach of one of the best teams in the country.
“Just a lot of really good people [in Humboldt],” Dresser said. “I always tell people it’s [Humboldt] a great place to grow up.”
The dual
Iowa State is coming off a dominant win against Big 12 opponent Northern Colorado, defeating the Bears 42-0 at home Friday. In South Dakota State’s most recent dual, they thumped Cal Baptist 36-3 Friday.
The Jackrabbits are the fourth nationally ranked team the Cyclones will face. The last-ranked opponent Iowa State played was No. 24 Stanford, which it beat 20-18 in Palo Alto on Jan. 4.
This dual features a plethora of ranked wrestlers on both teams. The Cyclones’ 10 starters are all ranked in the top 15 by FloWrestling. On the other hand, South Dakota State features eight of its 10 starters ranked.
“They’ve [SDSU] got a really good team this year,” Dresser said. “They’ve lost a couple recently, but have had some big wins this year. So we need to be ready to go this weekend.”
With all the ranked talent present, which match will headline? The bout at 197 pounds. Featuring Iowa State senior Rocky Elam, ranked No. 2, go up against SDSU redshirt junior Bennett Berge, ranked No. 6.
Before he wrestled at 197, Berge was the Jackrabbits starter at 184 pounds. It’s clear that moving up a weight hasn’t proven difficult for Berge, but it won’t be smooth sailing going up against Elam.
“He [Berge] better have his big boy pants on, because Rocky [Elam]’s all the 197,” Dresser said. “I know Rocky’s excited about that.”
Elam’s been on a tear this season. He sports a sterling 10-0 dual record and has scored 27 takedowns with only one against him. Elam has also done well against ranked wrestlers, too. He beat Ohio State junior, No. 10 Luke Geog, 9-0 by major decision. Also during the CyHawk dual, Elam defeated No. 4 Massoma Endene 8-2.
The 174-pound match should be hotly contested. Iowa State junior MJ Gaitan, ranked No. 15, and SDSU redshirt sophomore Moses Espinoza-Owens, ranked No. 18, will duke it out.
Gaitan has been great for the Cyclones. He is 9-2 this year in duals, has 29 takedowns, and is tied for first with pins with three. Gaitan’s signature win this season was taking down senior and at the time, No. 2-ranked Patrick Kennedy 9-8.
Espinoza-Owens has been dominant this year. He posts a dual record of 11-0 and has gone 20-4 overall this season. Espinoza-Owens is also the top earner in dual team points with 41.
This duel should be entertaining, with Iowa State featuring its complete 10-man roster as it goes up against a salty Jackrabbits squad.
No. 3 Iowa State and No. 15 South Dakota State face off at 2 p.m. in Humboldt High School; the dual can be watched on television, broadcast by Iowa PBS.
